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Louvre reveals dark faces of Old Master Raphael

PARIS (AP) — Raphael, the third in the Renaissance trinity of Michaelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci, is famed for his serene paintings of classic subjects — orderly, predictable and harmonious.

"Saint Jean Baptiste dans le desert", a painting by Raphael is presented as part of the exhibition "Late Raphael" at the Louvre museum, in Paris, Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2012. This exhibition, organized by the Louvre from Oct. 11 to Jan. 14, 2013 in partnership with the Prado Museum, brings together the works produced by Raphael in Rome during the last years of his life. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

But a landmark exhibit in Paris' Louvre museum turns this on its head.

It reveals a darker face of the Old Master — previously unknown to the public — in the 10 years up to his death. The exhibit shows how Raphael in that final phase of his life, while facing a crippling workload from a demanding Pope, allowed his students to finish many of his commissions in a more expressionist direction.

Louvre curator Vincent Delieuvin said Raphael also paid homage in that phase to the "dark, tense and expressive" style of Leonardo.

The Louvre said Tuesday that it's the first time all his moveable masterpieces have ever been put together. Many normally hang in churches and other galleries around the world.